ALEC COHEN/Daily
LSA students Kellee Byard and Rebekah Gere get samples at the farmers
market on Ingalls Mall Thursday.
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The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Friday, October 13, 2017 — 3
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(which didn’t bother me) … I
thought that the idea of someone
not wanting to work with me was
absurd, but I realized that there
are many people I will encounter
that will question my ability
comprehend and function.”
“Students
are
not
only
concerned about potentially
missing class … but it’s a safety
issue”
While Whiteus did not let that
event hurt her mental health
— she said it actually made her
stronger — the issue of students
feeling unable to go to class
because of depression or fears
that their safety is at risk is a
major worry of Esrold Nurse,
assistant
dean
of
academic
affairs.
One
of
Nurse’s
main
responsibilities
is
to
send
emails to professors on behalf of
students who need to miss class
for whatever reason. Usually, he
said, this is because of illness or
the death of a family member.
However, he also sends out
emails on behalf of students who
feel unable to go to class due to
fears of racism or discrimination.
“We’ve always had situations,
the way I see them, that affect
students’ ability to perform, to
do the things they came here to
do, which is to get a degree and
to be educated,” Nurse said. “My
role as assistant dean is to ensure
that students are able to do that
without outside distractions or
things that might happen. So
this is in that vein. The recent
incidences have clearly affected
some of the students in a way
that detracts from that mission of
focusing on the work they have to
do to get their degree.”
Nurse, a Black man, has been
in his current position since 1995.
The events of the last semester
are not new to him, but they are
still serious.
“This is really ratcheted up a
level, because students are not
only concerned about potentially
missing class … but it’s a safety
issue,” he said. “Whether this
place is safe for me to walk
around at night or during the day
and so on. So to that extent, it’s
really a big issue.”
The executive board of the
Black Student Union, which did
not respond to interview requests
for this article, tweeted about
Nurse’s service last week.
Nurse said he was glad the BSU
publicized his service, though he
did not ask them to do so. He just
wants everyone to be able to feel
safe and accepted on campus.
“I’ve sent quite a few (of these
emails),” Nurse said. “I don’t have
an exact number in mind, but …
it’s not excessive. In that context,
it’s part of the responsibility I
feel I take personally … The least
I can do is notify the instructor
of the difficulties they’re having
and I think that’s appropriate.”
“These organizations have
opened their doors for dialogue
and advice, and essentially
have become a safe space.”
Coping with racism does not
have a one-size-fits-all solution,
though. While some students
feel they need to stay home to
focus on self-care, others like
Whiteus are taking advantage of
communities around campus.
“My outlet for dealing with
these things is mainly connecting
with my peers. … I talk with
those who experience the same
injustices I do and those who
don’t so they will know the ways
in which their privilege can be
beneficial,” she wrote. “I am on
the E-Board for NAACP and I
attend BSU meetings. Both of
these
organizations
and
the
people in them are wonderful
and they work hard to make
the community one that is not
only inclusive but safe. These
organizations have opened their
doors for dialogue and advice,
and essentially have become a
safe space.”
James
also
hailed
the
importance of safe spaces, saying
a support system is crucial when
someone’s
identity
is
under
attack.
She
helped
organize
mental health discussions in
DAAS and also with the BSU,
though she said both events were
mostly student-led.
“In both places we talked about
what do you do to relieve tension
and pressure,” James said. “The
things ranged from calling your
parents to just talk with them
about some stories they can share
to give some inspiration and hope
to people saying, ‘I go to a Dojo
and take out the frustration,’ to
other people saying they journal.
There’s just a wide variety of
possibilities and that was helpful,
I think.”
CAPS has been important
in helping Black students work
through the racism on campus,
too. The BSU organized an
event with CAPS last Thursday
to help raise awareness of their
resources and talk about coping
strategies. According to Kelly,
CAPS is working to make itself
available to students beyond its
normal counseling services.
“I have gone to be a presence
at protests,” she said. “I’ve gone
to town halls. I’ve done specified
outreaches so students know
we are here. … That seems to
provide some sense of comfort to
students.”
Although
she
didn’t
have
exact numbers, Kelly also said
there has been an increase in the
number of students using CAPS’s
services.
Another way students are
coping with the frustration of
the last month is by protesting.
Groups have protested the C.C.
Little Science Building and bus
station on two occasions and
many minority students and
allies joined Dana Greene when
he knelt on the Diag for nearly 24
hours.
A Black LSA sophomore who
wished to remain anonymous
because of her position as a
diversity peer educator in U-M
Housing said protests are how
she channels her energy.
“It
hasn’t
gotten
to
the
point where it’s been super
jeopardizing in terms of being
able to get up in the morning, but
it definitely takes a toll on one
mentally,” she said. “Protesting
has been a way to relieve some
of those emotions that I’ve been
feeling. To just sort of express
myself … It really helps to make
a bolder statement that these
issues are happening.”
Ultimately, every student has
a different way of coping with
the emotional toll of the issues.
But the sophomore emphasized
the most important thing is for
any marginalized students is
to remember why they’re at the
University in the first place.
“After a while, I think we
all sort of strive to look beyond
what’s going on and think about
our ultimate goal, which is to
graduate,” she said. “All these
little, little obstacles and stupid
comments and incidents that
are happening on campus are
hurdles but we have to keep
pushing forward and not let it get
to us, in a way … ultimately, if you
get so distracted by these events
that you can’t study for a test and
you fail, then they’ve done their
job. So don’t let that happen.”
MENTAL HEALTH
From Page 1
Project
Manager
Adan
Hussain, who emphasized the
importance of creating a space
to welcome these students on
campus in an interview with
the University Record.
“What
we’ve
done
is
centralized
a
lot
of
first-
generation efforts,” Hussain,
who was also a first-generation
student, said. “It was really
important to us to have a
dedicated
space
because
it
creates a welcoming area and
shows our commitment that
we truly want these students
here.”
In an email interview with
The Daily, LSA senior Hunter
Zhao,
president
of
First-
Generation College Students @
Michigan, said he felt like an
imposter after first realizing
many of his peers came from
highly
educated
families.
Unable
to
identify
with
their past travel or research
experiences,
Zhao
said
he
initially struggled to come to
terms with his own unique
reality at the University.
“Beyond academics, I felt so
out of place at the University
of Michigan; it didn’t matter
how many friends I could
make on campus, I felt like
a
complete
imposter,”
he
wrote. “These feelings were so
pervasive during my first year
at Michigan, but I had no idea
how to make sense of my own
experience. After a structured
study group in my [organic
chemistry] class, I told one
of my classmates that I was
the first in my family to go to
college. ‘You’re so brave,’ she
said. And somehow those words
clicked in my mind. There had
to be others; I began looking up
other students at Michigan who
were the first to go to college.”
However, after Zhao joined
the First-Generation College
Students organization, he said
he finally found a community
where he belonged, in which he
learned the vocabulary to better
understand, and even challenge,
his
experience
on
campus.
He noted the University has
been incredibly generous in
supporting
first-generation
students and connecting them
with a multitude of career
opportunities.
“One
of
the
biggest
challenges that first-gens face is
recognizing their own identity
as a source of empowerment;
our organization has received
countless
requests
from
industries
like
Google,
Goldman Sachs and even the
Detroit Pistons, who all have
been interested in working
with first-generation college
students,” he wrote.
LSA junior Jazmine Mercado,
executive board member of
First-Generation
College
Students,
said
she
believes
the
new
First-Generation
Gateway will serve as a space
for students to come together
and feel comfortable discussing
their shared experiences.
“I think the First-Generation
Gateway is long overdue and
first-generation students need
a place they can feel safe and
content working in,” she said.
“I think the Gateway will
provide this to them and help
them grow overall. Hopefully
this Gateway will create a space
where, in the future, first-
generation students can feel
they can go and have a place
to study, talk with faculty or
simply hang out.”
Zhao
further
emphasized
Mercado’s sentiment, saying
Hussain has been a valuable
resource in the creation of such
a space for first-generation
students.
“Adan Hussain, the First
Generation project manager,
is incredibly well informed on
all the valuable resources that
first-gens can tap into while
they are a student at Michigan,”
Zhao
wrote.
“Rather
than
gauging the success of the
Gateway based on the number
of students who visit it each
month, I will know whether
it was successful based on the
friendships that form there
throughout the year.”
In the wake of the numerous
bias
incidents
that
have
occurred
on
campus,
Zhao
noted he perceives a failure of
the University to recruit first-
generation students and ensure
their safety on campus. He
said in order to fully address
the needs of first-generation
students, the University must
address the intersectionality
of
this
group
with
other
marginalized
groups
on
campus.
“The
University’s
failure
to properly respond to racist
incidents such as the slurs
found at West Quad represent
the
university’s
failure
to
the
first-gen
student
body.
The exclusion of out-of-state
students from the Go Blue
Guarantee
represents
the
exclusion
of
first-generation
college students. Barriers faced
by undocumented / DACAmented
students on campus represents
barriers faced by first-gens as
well. To address the needs of
first-gen students, the university
must address the needs of LGBTQ
students, students of color, low-
income students, etc.”
Mercado also lamented the
University’s failure to provide
adequate
resources
for
first-
generation
students
before
they submit their applications.
Furthermore,
she
believes
the University should provide
better statistics regarding first-
generation students on campus.
“I
believe
the
University
should be doing a much better job
in reaching out to first-generation
students,”
she
said.
“Most
students that I know that are
first-generation don’t know that a
lot of resources exists on campus
for them. The University should
be putting out more information
and being more proactive in the
way they give resources out. Also,
I think the University should be
doing a better job at trying to get
more first-generation students
to apply here and giving them
funds when need be. Statistics
on first-generation students are
not widely available to students
which
I
think
should
be
changed.”
GATEWAY
From Page 1
year with two years of MBA
education at the Business
School. Upon conferral, both
degrees will be awarded.
Bruce Mueller, associate
dean of academic affairs at
the College of Pharmacy, said
the program, sourced from
student demand, took about
a year to craft and finalize.
He said he spoke with many
students interested in the
program, and sees the dual
degree as a way to make
University
students
more
marketable in the workforce
after graduation.
“If (students) could learn
about logistics and some of the
things associated with business
school along with a clinical
pharmacy degree, they would
have a unique set of skills that
others wouldn’t have,” Mueller
said.
The College of Pharmacy,
in addition to the recent MBA
program, has two other dual
degree routes: one with the
School of Public Health and
another
with
the
Medical
School.
Pharmacy student Mason
Benjamin
is
currently
deliberating between the MBA
and the MPH program. He
said he’s interested in helping
developing
countries
with
inadequate care for diseases like
malaria, and he has changed his
original career path thanks to
the dual degree programs in the
College of Pharmacy.
“The
University
of
Michigan,
as
far
as
the
College of Pharmacy program
goes, has an extraordinarily
strong
clinical
program,
which is what draws most of
its applicants to the school,”
he said. “But the University
of Michigan also has a lot
of emphasis on developing
leadership capabilities in its
applicants — so originally
I went to pharmacy school
thinking I wanted to practice
clinical pharmacy, but then
as I started to see some of
the problems in the health
care system currently … I got
passionate about wanting to
change that.”
Pharmacy
student
Rona
Jin said dual degrees in the
Business
School
and
the
School
of
Public
Health
can
bring
new
pharmacy
backgrounds into the world
of “Big Pharma,” or sprawling
pharmaceutical
companies
often
accused
of
price
gouging.
“If more PharmD students
are in more business roles
than
just
PharmD,
they
would be able to bring the
perspective of a human aspect
rather
than
the
business
aspect of plain numbers,” Jin
said. “I feel like it balances out
the issues we have right now
with Big Pharma (who are)
just concerned about their
bottom line.”
Brad
Killaly,
associate
dean for Full-Time and Global
MBA Programs at the Business
School, said understanding both
the clinical and business sides of
health care is necessary for the
future success of both fields.
“It’s a complementarity that
allows many of our students
either in the Dental School or in
the School of Pharmacology … a
chance to both be the clinician
or be the expert in the health
care field that they need to be and
also appreciate the complexities
of the business of health care in
order for them to become better
clinicians,” Killaly said.
Benjamin said both the new
MBA program and the Public
Health
dual
degrees
allow
students to look at pharmacology
with a wider scope and can give
students the tools to work with
societies and cultures.
“It opens up additional career
trajectories,”
Benjamin
said.
“Instead of focusing on direct
patient care such as someone in
a community pharmacy such as
Walgreens or CVS or working in
a hospital where you’re making
decisions around medication
therapy for the patient …
these degrees would open
up your possibility to treat
populations
instead
of
people.”
PHARMACY
From Page 1
The department offers majors
in women’s studies and gender
and health, in addition to three
minors:
gender
and
health;
gender, race and nation; lesbian,
gay, bisexual, transgender, queer
and sexuality studies. According
to Ceballo, there are 72 women’s
studies majors, 65 gender and
health majors and 113 students
declared in the gender and health
minor — the largest of the three.
Ceballo noted these numbers
change daily.
The department was the first in
the country to offer joint doctoral
degrees with other disciplinary
departments
—
specifically,
English, history and psychology.
As part of the women’s studies
curriculum,
undergraduate
majors must complete 33 credits.
Specifically, they must take
Women’s Studies 330, which
Mendoza currently teaches.
He
explained
the
course
examines
different
types
of
feminist
theory,
including
psychoanalytic,
Marxist
and
transnational,
among
others.
Central to the course, he wrote, is
discussion of intersectionality.
“That is, (Women’s Studies 330)
considers critically how feminist
theory at its best always attends
to the other differences that
makes up a person’s subjecthood
and political commitments, such
as race, national background,
gender
identity,
class
and
sexuality,”
he
wrote.
“It’s
required for all Women’s Studies
majors precisely because it looks
closely and critically at what we
might understand as the feminist
theory canon and the various
methodological
interventions
that have emerged out of it.”
Ceballo also highlighted the
intersectionality that arises in
the field — the idea that how
people experience the world is
shaped not just by one social
identity, but by the intersection
of multiple, and that these will
change in different situations and
at different times.
“The concept that we have
to look at people’s multiple,
simultaneously
intersecting
identities to understand people’s
experiences in life is an important
one that will come up, and to
also
understand
how
people
have access to resources in our
society,” she said.
Mary Kelley, Ruth Bordin
collegiate professor of history,
American culture and women’s
studies, arrived at the University
in 2002. Prior to joining the
University faculty, she had been
a history professor at Dartmouth
College since 1977; she helped
establish the women’s studies
program at the college, which
notably enrolled its first cohort
of female students in 1972. She
currently teaches a class at the
University of Michigan called
“Sex and Gender in United States
History, 1600 to 2000.”
One
central
theme
she
introduces in her class is known as
the equality-difference dilemma.
It
involves
reconciling
the
emphasis upon sameness within
the pursuit of equality, while also
acknowledging difference.
“In
other
words,
if
you
juxtapose equality and difference
as a binary — equality being
an emphasis upon ‘everyone is
the same so therefore everyone
should be equal’ — and you
disregard obvious differences,
and yet at the same time if you
highlight difference, difference
becomes the fulcrum for creating
hierarchy,” she said. “So how
do you incorporate difference
without destroying or damaging
the idea of equality based on
DEPARTMENT
From Page 1
sameness?”
Kelley said in her class
she works through this topic
using a series of arguments.
The
underlying
mantra
to
understand,
she
explained,
is when people are equal
they should not be treated
differently but when people
are different they should be
treated equally through the
incorporation of the difference
in
their
circumstances
—
pregnancy leave and maternity
leave, for example.
LSA
senior
Anastasia
Pacifico is a women’s studies
major in the Honors program;
she is also a biology major.
Currently she is taking Sexual
Health and Clinical Science,
which
she
said
she
likes
because it incorporates both of
her interests.
“It’s talking about sexuality
through a medical lens, but also
a critical feminist lens,” she
said.
In terms of themes that recur
in classes, Pacifico said social
constructions are crucial, as
well as talk of sexuality, income
inequality and medicalization,
among other topics. She said
she has learned there are
several
different
kinds
of
feminism and that people’s
ideas of feminism differ.
“For
example,
white
feminism — Ivanka Trump
might think it’s feminist to
have Betsy DeVos have a really
big role in government,” she
said. “But then when you look
at the actual policies that
Betsy DeVos is implementing,
it’s bad for not just women, but
people seeking an education
and people from low-income
areas, which is a feminist
issue. So even though there is
a woman in charge that doesn’t
necessarily mean that it’s a
feminist accomplishment. It’s
all dependent on different
perspectives.”
With regard to the gender
and health major, Mendoza
explained its courses look
to incorporate a wide array
of
discourses
surrounding
aspects
of
health
and
associated topics.
“The gender and health courses
articulates
core
feminist
and
interdisciplinary gender analysis to
the study of varied aspects of health
and populations, including health
policies,
reproductive
justice,
representations of the human body,
sexual assault, disability, human
sexuality and psychology,” he
wrote.
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